The Tiny Timelord
by TheRedHat
Summary: Clara and Eleven take a trip to Pluto and meet an old enemy, only to make a few discoveries of their own.
1. Prologue

**Thank you all for reading and for the kind words. I really liked this story but I felt like there wasn't really a story arc and it wasn't Doctor Whoesque enough, so I have created this prologue to further the story. And to answer your questions, yes it has more to come. I am currently working on the third chapter! xx The Girl in The Red Hat**

_You never know what's going to happen next when you run with The Doctor. Perhaps you'll end up in Barcelona (the planet, not the city). Maybe you'll eat chips in London and watch time pass you both by. You might even find yourself hurtling towards a sun with only 42 minutes remaining to figure out a solution. One thing I know is that you'll spend so much time trying to remember what on Earth you did with your life before you met The Doctor. Last of the Time Lords._

"Doctor, where are we?" Clara asks, taking a cautious step out of the TARDIS. She looks around, expecting to see something but this place is empty. Completely, totally empty.

"That is a very good question which I will answer in just a moment," The Doctor says, taking a quick glance around and turning back to the TARDIS. "Yep thought so. Pluto."

"Pluto?" Clara asks. "You mean the was still a planet when I was in school but isn't a planet anymore Pluto?"

"That would be the one, yes. It's lovely isn't it?" The Doctor replies, his eyes searching the surface.

"So it's safe?" Clara queries, even though whatever the answer he gives she's sure something will crop up sooner or later. With him, it always does.

"Probably. See any monsters?" he tells her.

"Only you," Clara says with a smile. Then she runs, because there's so much here for her to see and she wants to take it all in now. That's one thing she hasn't gotten used to yet. Everything is so new to her still and she wants to drink it all in so she never forgets.

"Oi," The Doctor shouts after her, watching as she jumps and twirls around. She is beautiful, perfect Clara. He loves the way she is so effortlessly excited by everything. Not like Rose, who seemed to get used it more and more, or River, who sometimes knew more than he did. Clara was exceptional in her ways and that made it so much harder not to fall in love with her.

"Doctor!" Clara screams as something grips her foot. She tries desperately to pull away and he's running over to her. Then whatever holds her foot wraps around her waist and tugs her down into the dark. The Doctor watches as she disappears below the surface of the planet.

Clara wakes up in the darkness, a little blue light in the corner of the room. It's too dark for her to see much around the room, except that she is on some sort of bed and there's a blanket over her. She sits up to see a glass of water of a little table beside her bed, or at least it looks like water. _Best not to drink it, _she tells herself.

"Hello? Is there anyone around here who can explain what the hell is going on?" Clara shouts into the empty room.

"You are Oswin Oswald. Confirm!" a robotic voice replies. _Am I? _Clara thinks to herself. _No, I don't think that's my name. Oswald. I'm sure that's right but Oswin? _

"I'm not," Clara replies, because she is certain that she is not. "Who are you?"

"I am a Dalek," the voice replies. "Who are you?"

"I'm not sure," Clara mumbles, trying to figure out whether she should be frightened or not. _Why can't I remember who I am? How did I get here?_

"Then how can you be sure you are not Oswin Oswald?" the Dalek asks and she has to admit that it has a point.

"What if I am?" Clara asks.

"We want The Doctor's daughter!" the Dalek says.

_The Doctor! _Clara thinks. _I'm Clara Oswald. I'm The Doctor's companion. I saved him. I am not Oswin Oswald. But I am. Sort of. Daleks. Daleks. He met Oswin in the Asylum of the Daleks! _

"I think you've made a big mistake. My name is Clara Oswald, not Oswin. I am not her. I am not The Doctor's daughter either," Clara shouts, wondering why this Dalek is taking all this time with her. She knows, he's told her, that Daleks are pure hatred, they do not reason. So what is this one doing?

"Explain!" the Dalek cries.

"I have. You've got it wrong Dalek!" Clara replies. "Now what is it you plan to do with me?"

"Ex.."

"Sorry, not this time," The Doctor says, stepping in front of Clara. She gives him a smile and then something shifts and what she thought was the Dalek is just a light on the wall.

"Clara, stop!" The Doctor calls, grabbing her hand as she reaches out to touch the Dalek. She recoils quickly when she realises what she's doing.

"Doctor, what's going on?" Clara says, shaking.

"I don't know but hold my hand and whatever you do, do not let go!" The Doctor says. "Well, well. Should have known. It's always you isn't it? Unless it's the Cybermen," The Doctor sighs, looking at the Dalek and holding Clara close.

"That is Oswin Oswald. She will give us The Doctor's daughter," the Dalek repeats.

"I haven't the foggiest where you got these ideas, but this isn't Oswin. Oswin died! I was there and she died. She is dead and so are my daughters. You should know that. It's because of you."

"Incorrect. She will give us The Doctor's daughter," the Dalek repeats.

"Doctor, I'm kind of tired. Can we just go?" Clara mumbles, leaning heavily against his chest and steading herself by listening to his two hearts beating.

"Clara?" The Doctor says, looking at her. "Just hold on a few more minutes okay?"

Clara doesn't respond but she stays standing, holding him.

"She is ours now. And she will give us The Doctor's daughter!" The Dalek shrieks.

"Do you mean Jenny? She died. She is dead. My family is dead. Don't you get that?" The Doctor replies.

"Who's Jenny?" Clara asks. "Am I Jenny?"

"Not right…no you're Clara. Clara, are you okay?" The Doctor asks. He frowns, looking at the Dalek and that's when he realises. "Oh, you're clever. I'm leaving with her now and if you try to stop me I promise you will regret it."

"There's nothing you can do. She is ours. She will be ours. She will come back to us because she is one of us," the Dalek responds as The Doctor lifts Clara into his arms and races his way through the tunnels until they reach the surface. "Just a little bit further Clara. Just a bit further."

Clara looks up at him and smiles. "Why are you carrying me?"

"You…I…stand up then. Just don't go anywhere!"

"What did it mean? Why'd it let us go? It said I was one of them? And Doctor, I was Oswin. I stopped the Daleks. I made them forget. How did it remember?" Clara asks. _Why do suddenly remember all of this? What was happening? Why didn't I ask these questions already?_

"It let you go because of the nanogenes. It thinks you'll come back. It thinks you'll become a Dalek slave and return to it," The Doctor replies as he searches through all these things that Clara doesn't recognise.

"Doctor?" Clara whispers suddenly, sinking to the floor. "Can you take me home please?"

"And what does it mean my daughter? Even if it won and it got you, it wouldn't get my daughters. Either of them. I mean, I suppose Jenny. There's a slight, very slight chance that she could have regenerated but…it took too long. She would have regenerated. I waited. I waited for her. No, she's gone. But..ah ha… you Clara," The Doctor says, holding the bracelet in his hand, "are going to be fine!"

He turns to give her the bracelet to see her lying still, too still on the floor. "Clara!" he calls, checking her pulse. It's still there, faint but there. "Hold on Clara. Just hold on!" He clips the bracelet around her wrist and then they are off.

The hospital has a shop. The Doctor doesn't notice it, doesn't care for that this hospital has a shop because all he cares about is that Clara isn't waking up. They ask him questions he doesn't know how to answer because they are humans and they don't think but where else can he go? He cannot, will not lose her. They wheel her away from him, and he is begging them to let him stay with her. Instead, he is forced into a waiting room and told to wait. The Doctor hates waiting.


	2. Discovery

**For those who read this when this chapter was first, it is basically the same with a few very minor changes that correlate with the Prologue. Thanks and don't forget to review because kind words make it much easier to write quickly! xx The Girl in The Red Hat**

Clara sat on the edge of the bed, fiddling with the bracelet. She was healthy, they'd told her, just dehydrated. The Doctor had taken her home, forced her to go to bed and rest. Promised her he'd be back in two days. He just needed to do a couple of things. _He saved me. _Clara looked out the window, waiting to hear that beautiful sound fill the air. That sound that meant he was back for her. Over and over in her head she tries to figure out what happened with the Dalek. Why didn't it do more? Was it worried it would hurt her? Why would it worry about that? Unless…but no. That didn't make any sense. She missed him desperately whenever he disappeared, even if it was only for a couple of days. She wondered what he did and where he went, all the things he was seeing and doing with her by his side. Mostly, she worried that he'd get himself in trouble and she wouldn't be there to save him and worst of all, she'd never know what happened. She took a deep breath and stood up, feeling nauseous almost instantly. _Guess not then, _she thought to herself as she lowered herself back onto the bed. _I should be better by now. The Doctor fixed the problem and the nurse said I was fine unless I'm coming down with something. I better not be, I'm not missing out of travelling with him a day longer. _

The Doctor landed right outside her house, two days after he had forced her to stay behind, just like he promised. He'd missed her terribly. His impossible girl who's smile lit up his world like fireworks light up the night sky. He knocked on her door and waited, hopping impatiently from one foot to the other.

"Clara?" he called, but she didn't respond. He wondered suddenly if perhaps she weren't home and shook his head. No, he'd told her when he'd come back, he'd promised her. And he was on time. Perfectly on time. Had something happened to her?

Clara moved slowly even though she wanted nothing more than to run into his arms, press her lips against his. She still remembered their first kiss, inside his beautiful blue box. It had caught her off guard, the way he looked into her eyes. And then her lips were against his, breathing in his world. She wasn't sure who started it, but neither of them had wanted it to end. She worried sometimes that he still wasn't sure what their relationship meant, that he was still tied to River Song and even to Rose Tyler. That day, that one day they'd seen her when they shouldn't have, Clara remembered the look on his face. She never asked him what happened exactly, but he had cried and it had hurt her to see him so miserable. That's why she ignored the tiny voice in her head that told her there was something else, something she hadn't planned. When she reached the door she was certain she would be sick. Still, she opened the door and there he was. The same as always.

The Doctor looked at Clara and picked her up in his arms, carrying her back upstairs.

"You're still sick," he said, and she gave him that smile she seemed to save for him. He let his lips brush her forehead, just barely, a whisper to her.

"I'm fine," Clara managed to say as he settled her on the bed. He lay down beside her, folding himself around her body and tangling his fingers in hers.

"Liar," he replied. He could tell just by looking at her that she wasn't herself. He could just go off travelling again and come back in a few days when she was likely to have recovered completely. Humans. So weak sometimes. But no, he didn't want to travel alone anymore. Not even for a few days. Every moment away from Clara felt like a year. She was different in a good way, from River, from Rose, and besides, he'd kept Rose by his side as much as he could back when. And River, she was always around, always running into him and he'd always known she'd never be able to travel with him like the others did. They were heading in two different directions. Tragic love story at its best he'd always said to himself when he thought of River. Clara was perfect for him. She knew him better than anyone before her, perhaps even River, and she was here and she loved him just for who he was. With all his faults, all his stories, all his secrets. It wasn't just that though. She was fierce and strong willed and that first kiss, she'd pulled him in with her smile, her lips touching his and making him question everything he knew. She was a force that swept him off his feet.

Clara leapt up and raced to the bathroom, her stomach emptying itself and leaving an awful taste in her mouth. She could see him standing in the doorway when she sat up and tears she tried to force back rolled over her cheeks.

"Hey," he said, his voice gentle as he sat down behind her, wrapping his arms around her and holding her tight. "It's alright. It's alright Clara."

_It's not alright! _Clara wanted to scream at him. She'd tried to deny it, but suddenly it all made sense. The Dalek couldn't hurt her or it would never get what it wanted. She wanted to force him to see what she knew was obvious, what probably hadn't even occurred to him as a possibility and she wondered, oh how she wondered, about his other children for she knew he'd had them. How could he be so clever, such a clever boy, and not see this? She managed to get up and washed her face with cold water, looking in the mirror at herself and the man standing behind her. Everything about him was a risk, was uncertain, and now more than ever she needed safety.

The Doctor sat in the living room, waiting for Clara to return.

"Just going to the store," she'd said to him half an hour again. "I need something to settle my stomach. Crackers or something. I'll be fine. The fresh air will do me good." He'd offered to go for her, go with her, but she insisted she was fine and that he should stay right here. He thought about following her, after all, his companions always did that even when he told them, told them so many times, not to. But in the end, he sat down and he waited. He hated waiting. He jumped when he heard the door open and raced over to her. She gave him a big smile and threw her arms around him, burying her face in his chest.

Clara told him she'd just put the groceries away, she had bought several things they didn't really need to hide the one thing she really did need, and then she'd be ready for their next adventure. She told him she was feeling much better and he seemed to agree that she didn't look quite so sick now that she'd had some fresh air. She locked herself in the bathroom and prayed she was wrong because this couldn't be happening. Not now.

The Doctor bounded around the TARDIS while Clara watched him, all the while trying to figure out what on Earth to say to him. At least for now the nausea was gone and her head felt clear. She should just get it over with right? Tell him and find out what happens next.

"Where should we go?" The Doctor asked, stealing a glance at her. He froze in place when he saw her face. Her hands played nervously with her dress. Why was she worried? They'd done this hundreds of times now. She wasn't scared? Was she? What of? Him? No, not him. He'd know if she was scared of him. "What's wrong?"

"I…" Clara began. And then she was crying again. God, what had he done wrong? He waited but she said nothing, just whimpered silently to herself. He didn't know what to do, but he knew a place he wanted to take her. Somewhere he'd been before. Somewhere he remembered fondly. New Earth.

He managed to coax her out when they got there and it was beautiful, even more magnificent then he had remembered. The grass was green and fresh and he pulled her along, finally sitting her down in the sunshine where they could see across the water to the buildings that still stood. "Please talk to me Clara."

Clara looked at him, his green eyes begging her to tell him something, anything. He didn't understand, couldn't understand. She never felt like a young woman, forgot sometimes that she was only 24. She felt like she'd lived so many lives, so many years, it was hard to believe she was only 24. Most of her friends back home were just starting their lives and hadn't even met their future husbands yet. It was the 21st Century after all. And she was, just 24, and God, what had she done with her life? At least, until she met him. But how could she travel with him now? She knew what he'd say, knew what he'd do. The tears threatened her again but this time, this time she managed to keep them at bay.

"I think, I might not be able to travel with you anymore," Clara said. She couldn't do it. Couldn't tell him the truth. He'd stay with her, she knew he would. But he wouldn't go off saving worlds without her when she needed him to be with her. And the worlds needed him so much more than she did. A baby. It was only a baby. She could manage alone.

"Why not?" The Doctor asked. Something wasn't right, she loved him, he knew she did and he knew she wanted to travel with him. So what was wrong?

"I just …can't do it. All that running. All those risks. I never know if I'm going to make it home again," Clara replied, wiping a stray tear away.

"Please Clara, what can I do?" The Doctor said. "There's got to be something."

"Just…take me home," Clara asked and that was it. She fell into a silence and he couldn't get another word from her lips. So he took her home and watched her shut the door on him. But he wasn't about to shut her out. Something was wrong with her and he wouldn't leave until he knew she was safe.

He travelled alone, but he always came back. Every day he'd park the TARDIS and walk to her house, watch for her. Sometimes he'd get to see her but not often and this worried him even more. Finally, he gave up and when he saw Angie walking home from school, he pulled her aside.

Angie looked at him and smiled. "You still hanging around? She told you to hit the road didn't she?"

"Why? Why doesn't she want to travel with me anymore?" The Doctor asked, and Angie frowned. She knew why, it wasn't like it was a secret Clara could keep from them for very long after all and Angie had figured it out weeks ago. The Doctor wasn't as perceptive clearly. She thought it was up to Clara to tell him but he did deserve to know. "Come with me and you'll see for yourself."

Angie didn't knock, didn't need to since she lived her. Clara was sitting on the sofa watching some stupid show and you could see the little bump perfectly.

"About time Angie. Artie got here nearly twenty minutes ago and…" Clara said, walking over to her and noticing him far too late. She turned around not nearly quickly enough before thinking better of that option and bolting upstairs.

"Told ya you'd see," Angie said to The Doctor, who stood as still as a bloody statue. "She'll be in her room now. Might want to have a chat you two," she giggled and walked off to her own room.

"Clara, would you just open the door?! I'll sonic it if I have to!" The Doctor shouted, leaning against the door. She knew of course that he would get impatient eventually so she opened the door and took in every little piece of him. She had never missed anyone as much as she had missed him the last few weeks.

"You've been watching me haven't you? You even, you followed Angie home?!" Clara shouted at him because she was scared and vulnerable and she didn't want to be. She wasn't a little girl anymore. She was meant to be strong, unafraid.

"I was worried about you! And Angie told me to come with her, I didn't follow her," The Doctor replied. He kept looking down at the tiny little bump, the way it made her dress stick out just a little, and the way her hand floated above it, just a little.

"What would you have done if I'd told you? You wouldn't have let me travel with you and you'd have stayed here with me and who would have protected all those worlds if you were here?! I did it because I had to. I'm sorry I lied but what else was I supposed to do?" Clara cried.

"I…you…I wouldn't have made you stop travelling with me. Never. Especially not…never. I mean, yes, we might have had to take a step back for a little while but I'd never stop travelling. It's my life. It's your life if you want it."

"It's not safe," Clara mumbled, scared that he'd come to realise this all on his own.

"No. But nothing is, not really. You could be walking across the road and that'd be the end of you. I'm not saying I'm not terrified, that I want anything to happen to you, but Clara, I trust you and if you think you can, if you want to, then I will never stop you from travelling with me. I promise. Now, are you coming?"

"Nothing could stop me," Clara smiled and The Doctor lifted her up in his arms, twirling her around as she laughed.

"The three of us then. You, me and the tiny timelord."

"Will it…I mean, will it be a timelord?" Clara asked.

"I should think so. But even if it were human, I have met some incredible humans in my time and they can do just as much as any timelord. Well, I say just as much but…" Clara leaned forward and kissed him. And he knew he was never going to let her go.


	3. Martha Jones

**This one is a bit shorter than the last two and not as good but I hope you like it all the same. Reviews would be lovely and appreciated! xx The Girl in The Red Hat.**

"This is what the Dalek wanted. The Doctor's daughter," Clara said to him, looking at The Doctor as he lay half asleep. "That's why it didn't actually hurt me. It couldn't. If it had, it would have hurt her."

"It doesn't matter now. You're safe and so is she," The Doctor said, turning to face her. "Only I've been thinking, we're going to need to find a doctor. One we can trust. If the Dalek wanted her, she's got to be a Timelord. Or at least part-timelord. And that means she'll probably have two hearts. And that's a problem in your world."

"You've already got a solution though don't you? You always do?" Clara replied.

"Have I ever told you about Martha Jones?" The Doctor said with a smile and Clara knew Martha had been a companion of his. Clara knew them all, even the ones he didn't speak about.

"Hi there, Clara. I'm Martha Smith," the woman said, shaking Clara's hand. Clara looked at The Doctor and he shrugged. "Right this way."

"I thought you said she was Martha Jones," Clara whispered.

"She is. She just got married to good ol' Mickey," The Doctor replied.

"Take a seat. What can I help you with?" Martha asked as Clara and The Doctor took a seat in the little room.

"Martha, we have a problem and you're the best person for the job," The Doctor started. "Now you remember how well you kept my secret, I need you to do that again for me."

"Oh my God, Doctor?" Martha said, looking at the man. He's changed, totally different, but it's him, it has to be. _She still remembers that first day. When she heard his two hearts beating and he looked at her. She never told a soul about it unless he said it was okay of course. She loves Mickey, he's her world now, but she has missed this silly man with his time travel and his knack for finding every dangerous situation._

"That would be me, yes. And this is Clara Oswald. She's the one who needs your help technically speaking."

Martha looked over the girl, the pretty little thing who rested a hand on her belly and looked nervously between the two of them. "She's pregnant," Martha states, looking at The Doctor with surprise. _He'd never fallen in love with her when it had been him and Martha, when Martha had loved him so much it hurt when she looked at him and saw he was never going to love her back the way she needed him to. What had Clara done that was so special? She was nothing like Rose Tyler, Martha could tell. Martha knew so much about Rose, and Clara was a polar opposite. Okay, maybe not polar but definitely not the same._ Still, she'd help them. How could she not?

"So does that mean you're going to help us out?" Clara piped up. Martha nodded. _Thank God for that, _Clara thought to herself, some of the tension that had been building inside her floating away. Maybe things would all work out just right. Now the only thing that worried Clara was the Dalek that was still out there.

"I told you she'd help. Now what would you like to do?" The Doctor said as they walked along the streets, the leaves falling from the trees.

"Let's get ice cream. And just walk. It's nice not to be running for a change," Clara replied, her hand in his as they walked. Clara had always imagined that one day she'd have a real life, a house, children and the man of her dreams. Well, The Doctor was better than any man she'd ever dreamed of, and the TARDIS was like a thousand houses. And she was going to have a daughter, a little girl that would be hers and his, part timelord and part human. All the best parts of them mixed together. _My little soufflé girl. _

"Doctor," Clara said, lying beside him on the grass as they watched the sun set. "What did you think of me, the first time you saw me?"

"That depends on which you," the Doctor replied. _The first time I heard your voice, the way you flirted and spoke with such intelligence, I was intrigued. I wanted to find you, to help you and to show you the stars. The first time I saw you, the barmaid with an attitude, I knew you weren't going to just give up and let me wallow up on my cloud. I wanted you to travel with me, and I wanted to amaze you. The first time I found you, found the real you, I wanted to hold you close and never let you go because you were so beautiful. And then there was the first time you saw me, really saw me, not as an echo but as Clara, a little girl in the park with her parents. And I thought that you looked so much like your mother with just a hint of your father. _

"Any of them," Clara whispered back, sliding closer to him, her back pressed against his front.

"I thought you were beautiful and I wanted to travel with you, wanted to know you. Clara. My Clara," he whispered back, kissing her neck and trailing a hand down to her waist. "We should be getting back to the TARDIS, we've got some travelling to do!"


	4. Family

_The Doctor is brilliant, and funny, and so, so mad. He has lived upon a cloud and he has lost and he has loved. But you, my sweet little daughter, are part him and part me, and that makes you an impossible miracle. Because I'll grow old and even though echoes of me will always be around to help you both, the me you know and that knows you so well, will be gone. And that's okay. Everybody knows that everybody dies. Not every day, that's true. But eventually. You though, you can always keep your father company. He will protect you, as much as I will, and we will take you to places that other children can only dream of. _

"Clara, are you awake?" The Doctor said, gently shaking her shoulder. Since he'd found out she was pregnant, that he would have another child, a daughter none the less, he had felt himself letting go of whatever had held him back before, and he was definitely in love with the woman who lay beside him.

"Hmm," she murmured, rolling over to face him. She opened her eyes and looked at him, that perfect smile forming on her face. She leaned forward slightly and kissed him, gently, softly, savouring every moment with him. "I love you," she whispered to him.

"I love you Clara Oswald," he replied and Clara giggled. He always seemed to make a point of saying her full name, as if to check that she was still real and not another echo. She didn't mind at all, thought it was rather sweet in fact. Since they'd met the Dalek, Clara had tried to get him to say more about Jenny, she felt like it was so odd. A story with a loose end, just like he'd thought she was. He called her impossible, and she was. But he didn't seem to think the same of his daughter and Clara, she was sure something wasn't right about the way it had all happened.

"Doctor, why are you so sure Jenny is dead?" Clara asked and he sighed, then getting up and beginning to dress. She knows now that's he's way of avoiding the topic so she doesn't let it go. "Doctor," she said, sliding out of the bed and taking his hand in hers. "I just want to know. What if something was slightly different about her because she was cloned and she just took longer to regenerate or she regenerates differently to you? Maybe she's still out there. Wouldn't you like to be sure?"

"Clara, I know you lost your mother and that's terrible and I wish that there was something I could have done about it but there wasn't. Just because you know she's definitely dead, does it stop you from wondering, from hoping?" The Doctor asked. She was still wearing a bowtie around her neck, a silly idea she'd had last night.

"No. But I know that those are fantasy because I know for certain she is dead. You don't know with Jenny! Can't we just, keep an eye out for her?" Clara replied.

"I always keep an eye out for her. She never turns up."

"Well, now both of us can keep an eye out," Clara said, and The Doctor hugged her tight. _Oh Clara. If I could only believe you were right about Jenny. I would give almost anything to find her, to see her alive and happy. But it doesn't matter, because I have you now. You and our little soufflé girl. _

"Where are we going?" Clara asked him as he raced around the console, turning knobs and flicking switches. Even though she knew so much about him, she still had absolutely no idea how to fly this thing. It didn't even seem like he did, he just bounded around and pressed things.

"Barcelona! I have been meaning to go there for so long. I was going to take Rose but..anyway, I thought you'd like to see it. And don't worry, it's safe!" The Doctor shouted.

"You said that about Pluto, and just about every other place we've been," Clara replied, sighing as he jumped about. She could never get over how much of a child he was sometimes, and yet how much knowledge was stuffed into his head. How he didn't overload she'd never know.

"I mean it this time. I promise," The Doctor said as he opened the door and looked back at her. Clara sighed and followed him out, taking his hand and looking at the strange dogs who had no noses. Once this would have seemed strange to her, but now it was just another planet, another species that lived in a world she would never have even believed in without The Doctor. He was right about how lovely the planet was. The grass was a burnt orange colour that was soft beneath her feet, and the air was warm, a pleasant change from the cold of home. There was a marketplace set up, filled with aliens of all sorts and it reminded her of the first time she'd travelled with him to Akhaten.

"Doctor, is there anywhere you haven't been?" Clara said as he weaved his way through the crowds, leading her to this stall and that stall as he explained all the strange things that were being sold, the different systems of bartering they had.

"Oh yes. Plenty of places. That's the beauty of travelling though," The Doctor replied, picking up a little sphere and tossing it gently into the air a few times before placing it back from where he'd taken it.

"Hey Doctor, remember how you told me you had a granddaughter?" Clara whispered to him as they walked.

"Susan. Yes. I let her go. She fell in love. It was for the best," he replied.

"What happened to her? Did she die in the Time War?"

"I think so. I would have thought she'd have found me by now somehow otherwise. She wouldn't have left me alone like this. She was so worried about leaving me, but she fell in love and I let her go. It was for the best. And now she's gone forever. But it's okay. She was happy. She had a life of her own and she enjoyed it."

"Oh," Clara replied.

"Why do you suddenly want to know all about my family?" The Doctor asked. "It's not like you have to worry about meeting them."

"I just wanted to know. Speaking of family, we really should visit my dad. I'm sure he'd love to meet you."

"I don't like meeting families," The Doctor replied, pulling away from her and strolling ahead, reaching out to some weird object Clara had never seen before.

"Doctor, I hate to break it to you but if you don't take me home right now, I will make your life unbearable and you do not want to be on my wrong side, do you Clever Boy?" Clara told him sharply pulling him away and back towards the TARDIS. "And you will meet my father and you will behave for a change. I love you Doctor, but I won't let you make break me apart from the only family I have left! I lost my mother. Maybe not my whole family, because it was always just us three, but I know it hurts. That doesn't mean you can shut yourself off. Especially not since we will be a family of our own soon!"

"She won't fly if I don't want her to," The Doctor replied stubbornly, kicking a rock on the ground yet trailing behind Clara.

"You're impossible! I don't care anymore. Don't meet my dad, don't bother with families. Just take me home. NOW!"

_And that was how he left. He dropped me home and I watched as the TARDIS disappeared into thin air, wondering if he'd come back for us. For you. I guess I thought he'd come straight back, he'd give in in a day or two at most. Instead, I didn't see him until the day you were born, my little darling daughter. And you have no idea how lonely it was. Dad was there, and the Maitlands, and they helped me out heaps but there were so many questions. Martha was the best support and she was kind and she knew him. She told me he wasn't like that, he'd come back sometime. Dad was so angry with The Doctor, when he turned up on my doorstep months later, Dad punched him hard. I'd never seen my dad punch someone before. It turns out Angie tracked him down, found the blue box down the street, forced him to come back. Or that's the way she sees it. Because really, it was just my silly doctor. He'd meant to come back the next day, it was for him, but he got the date wrong and well, that was the end of it. I remember him telling me how he did the same thing once when he tried to take Rose home, and accidentally took her back a year later. And now here we are, you and I and that mad man in his blue box._


	5. Like Father, Like Daughter

**Hi there! Thanks all for reading and reviewing and just being your wonderful selves! I'm not 100% sure I like this chapter, and I might rewrite it completely. So if you really hate it, or if you really like it, please let me know so I can decide what to do. Until the next time, Pip Pip Cheerio! **

_My name is Aurora Ellie Oswald. I am the daughter of The Doctor and Clara Oswald, and I am a Time Lord and a human. I am the best of both of these things and I am the stars and all the worlds to my parents. I have seen things that so few children have ever, will ever see and I am going to see so much more. All of time and space is there for me to explore. But right now I'm in trouble and I'm stuck on Earth. _

Clara looked at her 6 year old daughter, sitting with her ankles crossed outside the principal's office, a smile on her chubby little face as waves of cocoa coloured hair tumbled down to her shoulders. If only she would listen and stop saying things in class. A moment later she heard footsteps running behind her and then Rory was up and running to her father, who lifted her up and twirled her about.

"Daddy!" she squealed, and Clara gave him that look, the same one she'd given him every other day they'd been called into the school. Aurora had started school six weeks ago, and they'd been called in 25 times, all because of Rory's lovely story telling.

"Sorry," he said, putting Rory down and holding her hand. He looked at Clara, his perfect wife, and then felt Rory squeezing his hand. "Hey, it'll be fine. Mum is brilliant, she'll sort it out. I promise. And then we can go home and have Jammy Dodgers and maybe go on a little adventure."

"I can hear you," Clara called back to him without turning around. "And that is not happening. Let's get this straightened out now."

"…And then she had the audacity to tell her teacher that Pluto was in fact a planet because she'd been there and it might be empty but that doesn't mean it isn't a planet. She said that this modern day Earth is so boring and most of the humans walking around have pretty empty heads but Earth is still a planet so why isn't Pluto? When her teacher showed her the information on why Pluto was demoted she said that it was a lie, placed there by the Dalkurks or something…"

"The Daleks!" Rory piped up, leaning forward on her father's lap. "It is Daleks, right Dad?"

"Rory," The Doctor said, then leaned forward and whispered "Yes but don't you say another word."

"The Daleks. Anyway, this is just an example of the things she has been saying. And today she attacked a student with this pen thing," Mr. Phillips said, handing Clara the device.

"It's a sonic pen. Daddy says I can't have my own screwdriver until I'm bigger. But it didn't even hurt that much. And he said that Daddy was like a big, old ugly giraffe!" Rory said, snatching the device from her mother's open hand and tucking it into her jacket pocket.

"Mrs. Oswald, I think it might be advisable if your partner were to take your daughter outside and we can discuss this further," the principal suggested. Clara nodded and watched him walk out with their daughter up on his shoulders. She loved them both so much but they infuriated her sometimes when they just couldn't manage to keep a low profile.

"What can I do? She's an imaginative child and she thinks the world of her Dad and I will be taking that pen off her first thing when we get home," Clara begged. She just wanted Rory to be able to live as a human, just in case, a back-up plan for her complex daughter.

"Honestly, I think it might be worth seeking a doctor's opinion. It's possible that your daughter could have some kind of mental illness," Mr. Phillips offered.

"Of course," Clara said with a quick smile even though she wanted to slap the man. There was nothing wrong with her daughter, it was this world that was wrong for her. Still, she wanted Rory to stay in school, at least until Year 9 or 10, and then she could travel with them full-time.

"I hope this is the last time I'll be seeing you," Mr. Phillips said after rambling on for another thirty minutes about Rory's attitude and incapability to see that sometimes she was mistaken. Clara thanked him and walked out to the car to find it empty. _Bloody hell. Like I need this. Oh Mister, you are in big trouble when I find you. _

"I don't get why nobody believes me. I've seen it Daddy, all of it. I know what I'm talking about and the kids make fun of me and my teacher gets so furious. Everyone thinks I'm a freak and nobody will play with me at lunch anymore," Rory said, swinging beside him in the park. They'd gone to get ice-cream to cheer themselves up.

"I know. But you've got to stop drawing so much attention to yourself. You need to know how to live on Earth without being noticed," The Doctor replied.

"I know that but why? I'm going to travel just like you and…" Rory stopped, looking at her mother standing across the road.

"Back-up plan. You know why. We've explained it to you many times Rory," The Doctor said, not looking at Clara.

"Daddy?"

"Yeah?"

"I think Mum found us," Rory said. Rory jumps from the swing and runs into her mother's arms, waiting for The Doctor to head over.

"We need to talk Clever Boy, and Rory you're going to see Martha tomorrow. You need to have a medical examination," Clara said, pulling them both back to the car.

"Should we move? Change schools? 25 times in six weeks. They'll start asking more questions soon and you encouraging her isn't helping!" Clara shouted after Rory had fallen asleep. The Doctor sighed and sagged down into the arm chair. It had been a lot of effort to invent this human life for themselves, and they'd already had to move once after a Dalek had found them and tried to kidnap Rory. So far they had managed to keep hidden, but Rory was going to draw more and more attention to them.

"Maybe. Maybe…it would be so painful for her though," he mumbled, and Clara sat on the edge of the chair, wrapping her arms around him.

"What?" Clara asked, desperate for something, for anything.

"There's this thing, the Chameleon Arch. It turns a time lord human, gives them a story and keeps them safe until they open a watch. The watch keeps all their timelordiness stuff inside, it's…it would keep her safe but we couldn't travel with her like that and it hurts. It hurts so much," The Doctor told her, remembering the last time. And Martha. Poor Martha.

"You've used it?" Clara said, tugging her head under his chin and running her hand along his face, looking at this man, her doctor. Was it this face that used it? Or another one?

"A while back, alien assassins, had to hide. I never wanted to use that thing again and Clara, when I say it hurts, it's not designed for a child. I don't even know if it's safe. It could remove everything of her memories. It could kill her."

"I won't risk it then. We'll figure something out," Clara said.

"Mummy," Rory's voice said from the doorway. "Let me try. I'm so sorry I keep messing things up. Just let me try the Chameleon Arch thingy. I want to be a good girl. I want to be like the others. I don't want to be the little freak."

"Come here," Clara said, holding her arms out and picking their daughter up, holding her tight. "Listen to me Rory, there's nothing wrong with you. Not a single thing. And you are not doing that ever. I promised to look after you and I will. So we'll move. But you've really got to try this time. Just listen to what your teachers tell you. Say nothing about the places you've been. You can be our clever girl, just not too clever. Can you do that?"

Rory nodded, and The Doctor wiped the tears from his daughter's face. Clara handed her to him, and got up, walking into the little studio she'd made for herself. She locked the door and sat down at the computer. She'd been writing down everything, every single thing for Rory, so that she would know all the places they'd seen, so that she'd know every story of her father even the ones he refused to tell. She wanted Rory to know all about his companions, all about his family, his friends, because they might have died but they were not forgotten. She knew, just like she was certain Rory understood, that someday, even The Doctor would die. And Rory would be all alone. Like father, like daughter.


	6. Big Sister

_Sometimes I used to wonder about my dad. Wondered where he was now, whether Donna and Martha still travelled around with him in his blue box. I often found myself wondering whether to try and find him, to travel with him like he'd said we would. I was having the time of my life though, travelling around, saving worlds, seeing all these planets and moons and stars. And always an awful lot of running to do. And there was Pluto, this peaceful, empty planet in the far reaches of what I think he considers his solar system now. Of course, I didn't know that the Daleks were there, or that they were going to use me to get to her. And she was so little. This chubby toddler with cocoa hair and bright green eyes. If I hadn't died that day, they'd have gotten her too. Besides, I regenerated, so it's not really dying. Just hurts a bit when they shoot you. _

Clara sat down at the kitchen table, having put Rory to sleep. She was such a sweet little girl, always had been since the moment she was born. Clara remembered the day she was born fondly. She'd just gone into labour when he turned up on her doorstep. Before he could say anything more than Clara, her father had smacked him right in the nose. She'd never heard The Doctor complain so much. After a lot of explaining and a lot of pain, Clara had her new little girl and her Doctor all in the same room. And she'd never been happier with her life. They'd talked so much about what to do in those early days, and they decided to travel until Rory was old enough to start school and then travel only on weekends and school holidays. Just until Rory learnt enough that she could blend in on Earth if she should ever need to. Now Clara smiled at her Doctor, fast asleep on the lounge, the television blaring. She'd never imagined him stopping for even a moment, and yet he was such an adoring father, always with her and Rory. Clara got up to turn off the television and heard a crash and Rory's scream and bolted upstairs.

The Doctor sat bolt upright when his daughter screamed, and saw Clara was already halfway up the stairs. He followed her and pushed the door open to see a blonde woman standing in front of Rory, a woman he recognised.

"Jenny?" he whispered and Clara looked at him with wide eyes. "Jenny, what are you doing?"

"I'm so sorry Dad," Jenny said. "Take her and get out. Hide. Don't ever let them find you."

"Who?" The Doctor started and then saw the Dalek slaves. The single Dalek that was between them and he picked Rory up, handing her to Clara. "Run."

Clara kissed him quickly and ran out of the house with Rory in her arms.

"Daddy! Daddy!" Rory squealed, tears streaming down her face as she squirmed in her mother's tight grip. "Mummy! Let me go!"

"I'm sorry sweetie," Clara said, her tears falling silently as she waited for her clever boy. And she was there. Jenny. He said she was dead but he was wrong.

"Rory what happened?" Clara asked her little girl.

"I don't know. I woke up and they were there and they were going to take me and then she just appeared like out of nowhere in front of me. She said they'd have to go through her and they wouldn't shoot her Mum. Why?"

"I don't know. I think they need her. They wanted you, and they wanted her obviously. It must have something to do with you being his children."

"She's not a child," Rory replied.

"No but she's still his daughter. Just like you. Sort of."

"Oh. So she's my big sister?"

"I think so. Yeah. Jenny her name is."

"Dad, I'll be fine. Just run would you!" Jenny said, looking at this new face and knowing without having to even think about it that it was the same man, still her Dad and he remembered her. Of course he would. She looked exactly the same as when they'd last met. "Please."

"Jenny I…" He started but then he did what she asked because Rory needed him. Jenny clearly didn't, she'd obviously travelled alone for this long. But it still broke his heart to leave her. And that was when he knew they'd have to move. Because even if Jenny managed to fight off the Dalek this time, they'd come back. They always came back.

_Daddy doesn't know what happened to Jenny but I do. I saw her once more and she wasn't with the Daleks then. They'd left her to die, thinking they'd killed her. She said she'd heard them talking just after they'd hit her, before she regenerated of sorts anyway, and the Dalek was in trouble. They needed the three daughters, that's what they said. Jenny, Rory and the other one. Except that there wasn't another one, not yet at the very least. They had to keep us alive for whatever they needed and they thought Jenny was dead. Jenny told me to watch out and to keep in contact. Jenny told me she'd stay around, here on Earth, in case I needed her. I told her she could stay with us but she insisted on staying on her own. 'If they need the three of us, it's better if we're apart.' And I couldn't not agree with that. So I keep her a secret, just as I do what I know about the Daleks. At least for now. _


	7. A Day at the Beach

**Hi dear readers. Sorry I didn't update sooner but assignments got in the way. Thanks all for the reviews and everything. This chapter is a bit different from the others in that it's just cute and simple and nothing much happens. But I hope you enjoy it all the same. Until next time Pip Pip. Also fyi, if any of you wanted to follow me on Tumblr, I have a personal blog and a Whouffle side blog (where this fanfic is also posted) so PM me if you're interested. Cheerio.**

**A Day at The Beach**

_We spent the entire weekend moving house for Rory, to keep her hidden and happy. It's the first weekend in weeks that none of us have felt like going on an adventure. We just want to be an ordinary little family for a couple of days. Forget about the fact that Rory has to start a school tomorrow and that we've both got to find new jobs. Forget that we moved outside of London down to Brighton just to escape. It's a whole new start for us, starting with a trip to the beach._

"Wow!" Rory yelled, running down to the water at full speed. "This is so great. We haven't been to a beach for ages!"

"Just be careful," Clara warned her, watching as The Doctor pulled his shirt off over his head and placed it with their towels on the sand. Even after all this time Clara sometimes felt that she shouldn't look at him that way, that he was The Doctor. Then he kissed her and pulled her down towards the water and she forgot about it.

The water was cool and Clara swam out until her toes could just touch the sand below. Rory followed her and held on to Clara's back as she swam around with her daughter. The Doctor was still not used to beaches, to all this swimming. She remembered when Rory was only a little girl and they'd come down to the beach with her dad and the Maitlands. Angie had played with Rory in the shallow water. Clara had always been a strong swimmer, her mother had made sure that she had swimming lessons when she was young and Clara enjoyed swimming. She just assumed that The Doctor would be fine after all what couldn't he do? She was swimming out and then heard him calling out to her. She turned around to see him thrashing and flailing wildly in the water.

"What's wrong?" she asked, swimming up to him and pulling his arms tight so he couldn't move and splash her.

"I'm drowning!" he said and looked at her wide eyed.

"No you aren't," she giggled. "It's not even that deep here. Stand up."

He stood up and was only just over waist deep. She'd never seen him so worried before, especially about something so silly.

"Do you…know how to swim?" Clara asked him, trying not to laugh. Angie and Artie were watching them while Rory babbled and played with the water.

"Of course I do. I just…I must have slipped," The Doctor said, pushing his wet hair back with his hands. "Agh, there's sand in over me! Why do you humans like beaches so much?!"

"Come on then Clever Boy, let's swim out there. See the buoy of there," Clara said, pointing to the red buoy about 20 metres away. "We can swim there. In fact, I dare you. It's a race. Ready, set, go!"

Clara dove under the wave and when she resurfaced she heard the Doctor yelling about something and turned to see that he'd missed the wave and had been pushed back towards the shore a little. If he knew how to swim it certainly wasn't well. "You alright?"

"I'm fine Clara. You better hurry or I'll beat you!" The Doctor replied, swimming towards her. She highly doubted it, but she swam anyway, reaching the buoy well before he did. He grabbed onto the buoy and they floated there for a few minutes.

"I think you need some swimming lessons. Maybe you can take Rory to swim classes for a while," Clara said to him, swimming around him. She dove down and pulled his legs out from under him, smiling to herself. She resurfaced for air and released that he hadn't. _Oh God. Damn it. _Clara thought, diving back under to see The Doctor staring at her under water. She reached out to pull him up when he slipped just a little away from her and shot up to the surface.

"That was mean!" Clara said a second later, splashing him.

"You pulled my legs out from under me!" The Doctor said, pulling her close against his chest. "But I'm sorry. Race you back. We should build a sandcastle. That's a lot of fun."

"If I win, you cook dinner tonight," Clara told him, getting ready to go.

"And if I win, well…we can talk about that when we get home," he said with a wink that distracted Clara. "Go!"

The Doctor wasn't a bad swimmer, but Clara was much better and she beat him easily, reaching their daughter and Angie in the shallows. Clara picked up Rory and walked onto the sand, finding just the right kind of sand for building sandcastles. The Doctor sat beside his two girls and they built a sandcastle. Well, Clara did. The Doctor mostly watched and didn't realise that Rory kept putting handfuls of sand down his shorts until they were overflowing with sand.

"Daddad," Rory said, pointing to the sand.

"What on Earth," The Doctor said. "Rory!"

"What?" Clara said, looking at Rory who was now adding sand to castle.

"She put sand all through my shorts. Do you know how long I'll be finding sand around the house and the TARDIS?! This is why I don't go to the beach," he complained.

"Oh Doctor, really. It's just a little sand. It won't kill you," Clara had told him. It had been a beautiful day.

Now she looked at him, swimming almost as well as she did, and was glad he'd changed his mind about beaches. It was Rory that really helped how much he loved the beach. It was the one thing Clara could see of herself in their daughter. Rory swam over to her father and climbed onto his back, giggling as he tossed her off into the water. As much trouble as they could both be sometimes, she'd never change it for all the worlds in the galaxies. And she'd seen most of them. Her Clever Boy and her Tiny Timelord. It was so impossible and yet it was hers. For once, Clara felt she deserved her title of 'Impossible Girl.'


	8. Second First Day

**Hello readers. I'm going to apologise first for how long this chapter took and second for how boring and not that good it is but I wanted to get something up anyway. Reviews would be nice, as would any suggestions/prompts/criticisms that can help me make it better. Until next we meet, Pip Pip. **

_I packed my bag for my second first day of school, new town, new school, new kids and teachers all around me. Daddy promised me if I did well this week we would go on an adventure Friday afternoon, as soon as the bell rang he'd be there with Mummy to pick me up. So I shoved the sonic pen deep into my bag, underneath my books and pencil case and lunch bag. And then I went and hid in the TARDIS._

"Aurora Ellie Oswald," Rory heard her mother calling. She pulled her uniform over her head, her swimmers beneath it, and dove into the cool water of the pool. She swam across the room and pulled herself out at the other end, looking over her shoulder. Clara knew her way around the TARDIS very well now. When Rory was little, they always played hide and seek in the TARDIS and Clara was always the best at finding them both. Rory ran down a corridor and into the library, climbing up on of the ladders and hiding behind a series of shelves. She remembered The Doctor, her father, reading old Gallifreyan stories to her, teaching her Gallifreyan as he read.

"Rory. I know it's not easy to move and go to a new school but it'll be alright. Just come out," Clara called.

"Rory, please come out. I know you're in the library," The Doctor added. She could hear their footsteps, perfectly in sync, coming closer and closer. She leaned back, trying to sink into the books and hide. As she did she looked down and caught the deep brown eyes that belonged to her mother. They looked at each other for a moment before Rory burst into tears and sunk to the floor, covering her face with her hands. Clara raced up the ladder and picked up her daughter, hugging her close and she moved back to lower her to The Doctor.

"Rory, honey. We promise we'll be there to pick you up and who knows, maybe you'll make a new friend at this school," The Doctor said to her, cradling her in his arms. Clara watched them as Rory wiped the tears from her eyes.

"You promise?" she whispered.

"We promise," Clara said, and her daughter smiled. She might look like a carbon copy of her mother except for her eyes, but when she smiled it was obvious she was his daughter.

Rory sat down at her desk and her father squeezed her shoulder and handed her a note. She tucked it into her pocket as her mother kissed her cheek and told her they'd be waiting for her at three o'clock. Rory nodded and watched them walk out, her mother slipping her hand into her father's as they did. She opened the note carefully, a note written in Gallifreyan. Anyone else would just think it was nonsense but she smiled. Her parents always managed to cheer her up.

A little girl sat down in the table next to her and looked at the note.

"What's that say?" the girl asked.

"Oh nothing," Rory replied, tucking it back into her pocket. "I'm Aurora. But you can call me Rory."

"Jessica, but call me Jessie," the girl said with a smile that showed she was missing two of her baby teeth. "You must be new here right? I haven't seen you around before."

"It's my first day," Rory replied as more children walked in and sat at their desks. The teacher, Mrs. Loman, stood up the front talking to a few parents.

"Will you be my friend? I don't have any friends yet, the other kids think I'm a bit weird because I believe in fairies and aliens and stuff but it's real. I've seen them. So did my Mum and Dad, years ago."

"I don't think that's weird. I've seen them too," Rory said.

"I thought so. You look like the kind of person who believes in that sort of stuff," Jess replied. "Oh and best of all, there's this man called The Doctor and he goes around saving the world. Mum told me that."

"Your Mum knows The Doctor?" Rory asked, wide eyed. She didn't think there was anyone who knew about him enough to tell their child. She'd ask him as soon as she got home.

"Yep. She met him once and he helped save her life. It's funny because actually it's sort of how she ended up with my ol' Dad," Jess replied, clearly excited that somebody was listening to her stories for a change.

Rory waved goodbye to Jess that afternoon, racing over to her mother's open arms.

"Did you have a good day Rory?" Clara asked and Rory nodded.

"I met a girl named Jessica and she's my friend now and she knows who you are Dad! She talked about The Doctor," Rory told them.

"What? Where is she?" The Doctor asked. Rory pointed to the blonde little girl standing beside a woman that The Doctor vaguely recognised. They hadn't met for very long and it had been a strange circumstance, but that woman had to be Sally Sparrow.

"Who is she?" Clara asked him.

"Sally Sparrow. I met her a few years ago. She wouldn't know me though, not with this face. She helped me out against the Weeping Angels."

"So can we maybe let Jess come on an adventure with us sometime?!" Rory shouted excitedly, looking over at Jess again.

"Not yet, but maybe one day Rory. Mum's going to take us out to get ice cream now and we'll go to the park. I bought a couple of kites today and I thought we could fly them for a while. Sound good?"

"Sounds great Daddy," Rory said. She stood between her parents, holding their hands and swinging as they walked.

_It was such a beautiful year that year. Just me and my Mum and Dad, travelling time and space between them working and me going to school. Jess made everything so much better, she listened and believed me when I told her stories about where we'd been on the weekend and I promised her one day that we'd take her with us. The Daleks didn't find us again and we visited lots of people all through space and time as a little family. Best of all, that year, Dad started teaching me how to fly the TARDIS and from then on I never looked back._


	9. Opposite Children

**Opposite Children**

**A/N: Hi readers. I'm sorry I haven't updated my computer broke but it is fixed now! Please review because I could really use the feedback. Any suggestions/criticisms/general words all help and I will love you forever. Until next time, Pip Pip!**

_Before Clara, I had been so certain that was it. I would hide up on a cloud in the sky and not investigate any longer. Losing the Ponds and knowing that River was gone I was bitter and furious with a universe that had become my backyard. I fell in love with Clara the moment I met her in London and she bought me back down to Earth. I thought I'd lost her again then. Yet here we are, me and her. Even though she tells me that it doesn't matter, I will always regret dropping her home that day and missing out on so much when she was pregnant with Aurora. My girls were the best things in my long life. I'd forgotten what it was like to have a real family, to wake up in the morning and have another person lying beside me, to hear the laughter of my daughter. Suddenly I wasn't just The Doctor, I was a father again. And it was all because of my Impossible Girl. _

The Doctor walked into Clara's office planting a kiss on her cheek and looking at her computer. She turned to him and smiled.

"Was she alright this morning?" Clara asked him.

"Yep. She raced off as soon as she spotted Jess. I told you she was tough, just like you."

"I think you'll find she's a lot more like you actually. But I'm glad. Especially since there's something important I need to tell you."

"Are you okay? Is something wrong with Rory? The Daleks haven't found us again have they? Why does it always have to be them? I don't even know how they remember me. You, I mean, well Oswin wiped their memory. I don't understand how these ones are...it's not about the Daleks is it?" The Doctor asked, looking at Clara who was giggling.

"It's nothing like that. It's good, well I think it is. We're having another baby," Clara told him.

"Really?" he asked and she nodded. "I guess that means we'll have to cut down on our travels soon but that's okay. I think I like this adventure better anyway."

"How do you think Rory will take it?" Clara asked.

"She'll be excited I think. I know she's a good kid and she has a nice friend now but she seems lonely. I know what it must be like for her, being different. A brother or sister that's the same as her might be the best thing that happens to her. Although she'll probably be a little upset about not being able to travel as often for a little while."

"You can still take her and I can stay home or stay in the TARDIS. I think she'd go crazier than you if we made her sit home on the weekends. Besides Mister, I'm pregnant not dying. I mean maybe we can cut down on the running a little but I'm not incapable of doing things. I managed without you last time if you remember," Clara said, grabbing her mug and walking out to the kitchen.

"I could have gone back and come back the day after I left you. I told you I would," The Doctor replied, chasing after her.

"It's okay Chin Boy. I knew you'd come back eventually. You always do."

"I suppose I should get dressed. I have a job interview in an hour, teaching Science and Maths at the high school," The Doctor said.

"I can't believe you, actually working like a normal human. What has happened to the universe?!" Clara said. "Oh and maybe don't wear a bowtie."

"Bowties are cool," The Doctor replied.

"Whatever you say sweetie," Clara laughed.

The Doctor walked down the footpath, smiling because he couldn't imagine how this day could possibly get any better. The job interview had been a breeze and he would start next Monday. He would have another child in just a few short months and his daughter was finally starting to adjust to life on Earth. He was a little early to pick her up and noticed Sally sitting on a bench flipping through a book.

"She's a great author," The Doctor said.

"I think so. Jessica is really interested in it," Sally said. "You're Aurora's father aren't you? Jess pointed you out the other day."

"John Oswald," The Doctor said, shaking her hand and sitting beside her. Clara had called him untraditional when he'd suggested taking her name instead of being John Smith but she'd agreed all the same. It made more sense to him that way since it tied them together. Besides Oswald was a far better name than Smith. "Rory's told me all about you and Jess. She tells me that you tell Jess stories about a man named The Doctor."

"Oh," Sally said, blushing and looking down at the book. "I told her not to talk about it. I only met him once for a moment but he saved me and he was a very interesting man. He called himself that, just The Doctor. No other name or anything. I never saw him again."

"Maybe you will one day," The Doctor replied. Sally nodded and the bell rang, both of them standing to wait for their daughters.

"Perhaps. Jess has been asking me about this but I was wondering if Rory might like to have a sleepover with Jess on Friday? I could pick them up from school and drop Rory home on Saturday. Would that be alright?"

"I'll check with Rory but that sounds fine. Sally Sparrow," The Doctor said as Rory raced out, dragging Jess behind her.

"DAD!" she said with a big smile on her face. "Jess wants to know if I can sleepover on Friday night. Can I Daddy?! Please, please, please!"

"Of course. I was just talking to Jess' mum about it."

"YAY!" Jess squealed and the girls hugged tight, dancing around in a circle. Sally laughed at her daughter and then told her to hurry up because they had to get moving if Jess didn't want to be late for dance class.

"Bye Rory. See you tomorrow," Jess said with a wave.

"Bye," Rory said, waving back. "Daddy, how come Mum's not here?"

"She wanted to go grocery shopping without us. I can't blame her after last time," he told her.

"It wasn't my fault. You tripped me," Rory said.

"I did not."

"Yes you did. Besides, you're the one who tried to sneak those Jammie Dodgers into the trolley and you're the one who told me that I could cartwheel down the aisle if I was careful," Rory argued, holding her dad's hand as they walked home.

"Fine," The Doctor replied. "Would you like to go travelling this weekend?"

"Yes please. Where?"

"Anywhere. Mum and I have something important to tell you and I think you can choose the place this time. You're getting better at flying the TARDIS," he replied.

"Can we go to Lekyo? The city is really pretty there. It's my favourite. Plus it's nice and cold."

"I suppose so. It's not that exciting though," The Doctor said. He'd taken Rory there for her 5th birthday and Rory had loved climbing the stairs of the crystal tower. She'd climbed for the whole two hours, all the way to the top. Clara had loved it too but The Doctor had been there many times and it was always the same. The Trill, aliens who existed only as mist, guarded the attraction and had won many battles. The use in being mist was that it was extraordinarily hard to injure a Trill, let along kill one.

"You said wherever I wanted to go!" Rory replied.

"Yes I did. Lekyo it is."

_That was one of the amazing things about Rory. She was still so young, so like me when I first started out. She saw the beauty in places that I couldn't see any more and she was compassionate yet fierce, ready to fight if she had to. She was so excited when we told her she'd have a brother or sister and she insisted that if it were a boy he'd be named Benjamin. When Clara asked her why, she just insisted that it was his name. When Benji was born it was obvious that he was most certainly a Benjamin but I could tell even in those early days that he was not like his sister. He hated being on the TARDIS with us and only calmed down when we arrived home. As he got older, he would cry and refuse to come travelling with us. Rory was understanding as she could be but it started to bother her as she also got older. She had Jessica but the two of them never really made any other friends and Benji didn't like to be seen with them at school. She wanted desperately to leave school behind and travel permanently. I promised her when she turned 16 that she could, that I would allow her to travel alone sometimes. Clara didn't particularly like that suggestion but neither of us could find another solution. Benji was different but he was my son as much as Rory was my daughter and I couldn't favour either of them. My daughter liked to run while my son liked to walk._


End file.
